Michael Jacobs, mayor of the Delaware County village of Stamford and a prominent local lawyer with the firm of Jacobs & Jacobs, died suddenly on Saturday.
The Daily Star reports that the cause of Jacobs' death was a heart attack, according to family friend Maria Kelso:
Kelso said Jacobs collapsed at the third annual Delaware County Republican Pig Roast and Family Barbecue at the Delaware County Fairgrounds in Walton on Saturday. The Walton emergency squad, a Franklin town justice and others made a tremendous effort to try to save him, she said.
“It was horrific,” she said. Kelso said she took family members to the hospital and home later. “It was a very sad day,” said Kelso. “He was proud of his children and loved his wife.''
The Stamford village board of trustees will convene at 1pm today for a special emergency meeting to discuss how to proceed with village governance in the wake of the mayor's death, according to village clerk Nancy Milea. Jacobs' wife, Donna Jacobs, is also a village trustee, the Daily Star reports.
Jacobs was serving his third term as Stamford's mayor. He was re-elected to his current two-year term in March, besting challenger Vera Bell 84 to 70. As Stamford's mayor, Jacobs was proud of his efforts to keep village taxes low. A lifelong resident of Stamford, Jacobs had also previously served as a judge for both the town and village of Stamford.
Funeral arrangements for Jacobs are being handled by the MacArthur Funeral Home in Hobart.
Update, 4:45pm: At an emergency village board meeting Monday afternoon, trustees decided to have trustee Joan Hinman carry on in her capacity as deputy mayor until the next village board meeting, at which a new mayor could be appointed to fill out the rest of Jacobs's term. The vote was unanimous, with trustees John Bonhotal, Reid Golden and Hinman present. Minutes from the meeting are embedded below.
Minutes of emergency village board meeting, Stamford 8-26-2013 by Watershed Post
